The 2023 NBA Playoffs Conference Finals are getting more and more attention as it is a rematch of the quarterfinals three years ago. The Western Conference will face the 7th seed LA Lakers and the 1st seed Denver Nuggets, and the Eastern Conference will face the 8th seed Miami Heat and the 2nd seed Boston Celtics, the same as it was in 2020.
At that time,스포츠토토 the Lakers and Miami advanced to the finals, and finally the Lakers (4 wins, 2 losses) enjoyed the joy of conquering the top. In that sense, fans’ interest in the rematch after 3 years is getting hotter. This is because the losers at the time were more advanced and the team composition and momentum were also different. Above all, it can be said that any team has proven that it is capable of aiming for the championship if it advances to the semifinals through fierce competition.
Although there is a power balance for each team, it is evaluated that it can be overturned as much as it is depending on the momentum fight and strategic confrontation because it is one piece of paper different. First of all, in the confrontation between Denver and Lakers, Denver overpowered the steamer and raised the possibility of revenge. Denver’s star, Nikola Jokic, led the team’s victory with a triple-double. However, there are many opinions that the real match starts now as the Lakers big man team, including Anthony Davis, showed formidable power.
If the topic of conversation between Denver and the Lakers is a ‘big man match’, Boston and Miami are focusing on a ‘swing man match’. Boston and Miami are led by outstanding small forwards, Jayson Tatum (25‧203cm) and Jimmy Butler (33‧201cm), respectively. There are many common denominators, such as the fact that they score by creating space through concise play rather than dragging the ball for a long time with fancy dribbling, and that they burn more in big games or clutch situations.
They are also very similar in their growing environment. Although he suffered a lot due to a poor family environment in his childhood, he grew up properly under the care of his wonderful mother, and he continues to set a good example for his juniors to this day. This is why he is receiving extraordinary support in a trend where more and more selfish and vicious players are increasing.
Tatum was raised by a single mother until elementary school. His mother, Brandy Cole, was a responsible person. When she was in high school, she met Tatum’s father and became pregnant, but his father, who was a basketball player, left for a European league without knowing it. Although Cole was young, she raised Tatum alone, with no one to rely on.
He gave up his dream of being a promising volleyball player and gave birth to Tatum. Afterwards, he went on to study law at St. Louis University to parallelize childcare and studies. He couldn’t even properly prepare for postpartum, let alone anyone to help. He had no place to leave his baby, so he often took Tatum into the classroom to attend classes. Even in such a situation, Cole goes through law school and becomes a lawyer. It is quite surprising in that it is a result achieved while working, raising children, and studying at the same time.
What’s even more remarkable is that he paid special attention to his son’s character education even in the midst of hard times, always saying good things and guiding him to grow up properly. His father, who found out the truth belatedly, said he returned when he was in elementary school and worked hard together after that. Cole learned a lot from his parents, especially his mother. In particular, his attitude of not giving up at any moment and moving towards his dream resembles his mother, and he is living without forgetting his teachings to this day.
Butler’s life story is even more eventful. If Tatum grew up with a young mother’s devoted love, it was her adoptive mother who changed Butler’s life. She is also a white mother, not black. Butler’s biological parents in turn abandoned him. His biological father left his family when he was very young and his biological mother abandoned him when he was 13 years old. With nowhere to go at his young age, Butler was forced to sleep on the couch or on the floor, touring his friends’ homes. He had no relatives to turn to for help, no institutions to show concern for.
Surprisingly, even in the middle of it, he didn’t fall into the bad side. This may have been influenced by his original character, but above all, it is also because of his great passion for basketball. Butler still wants to play basketball, and he struggles through high school. Afterwards, through a 3-point shootout match, he becomes a family together at his house through a bond with a junior he has become close to, allowing him to focus on his workout.
Her junior’s mother, Michelle Lambert, was already raising her six children, and her housekeeping was not enough, so she did not welcome Butler at first. However, she said that she believed in her and accepted her as her adoptive son because of her good character and the way she plays well with her children. She has since treated Butler without discrimination from her other children. He severely scolded me for wrongdoing, and warmly embraced me and comforted me when I was mentally struggling.
The young Butler felt the presence of a family thanks to his adoptive mother and many younger siblings, and in a sense of security, he was able to gain a driving force for his goals and focus on basketball more. His biological mother abandoned Butler, but a better adoptive mother cared for and embraced the wound. It is impossible to know what his life would have been like had it not been for the existence of his adoptive mother, who had been with him at the most critical times.
Brandi Cole and Michelle Lambert took on Tatum and Butler and turned them into great young men. The two, who grew up like that, are competing in the NBA, the world’s best stage, and met each other at the playoff conference final stage, leading their respective teams. Now, beyond the pride of her mother, she has become the pride of Boston and Miami. In any case, the match must be decided. Among the two aces who look similar, attention is focusing on which one will laugh after the series is over.